Although they were the first ever Eurovision winner, in more recent times, Switzerland have been on struggle street at the contest they were once successful at, having failed to qualify more often than not in recent years. After many fans putting their hopes in Timebelle last year and them seeing them ultimately fail to qualify to the final, it was unsure if we’d see something strong enough to be able to bring Switzerland back to the final.
After a pretty underwhelming national final, we ended up with the song Stones performed by the duo Zibbz. After hearing all the competing songs of the national selection, it was fairly clear that this was the only track that had real potential in the context of Eurovision, and I’m glad it won the opportunity to represent the nation. Although we loved the original version of the song played at the national final, the song did get a revamp which has completely lifted the track into a new dimension.
I love that we’re hearing something a bit more edgy from Switzerland, as it’s been quite a few years since we’ve heard something more rock oriented. Beyond that, this is probably the most contemporary song we’ve heard from them in a long, long time, so it’s nice to see that finally they’ve caught up to today’s music scene. This is the type of song that commands your attention immediately, and you feel drawn in to continue listening, and then you hit that mega epic chorus. There’s no denying that it’s a catchy melody, and although it’s not a pop tune, it’s still appealing whereas something like the Hungarian song is probably more likely to divide listeners.
If we rewind back to the national final, I liked the style of staging they used for their performance, but judging by the quality of the music video, I think we should be expecting something pretty epic from the Swiss this year. A song like this has so many avenues for staging opportunities, and I suspect lighting and perhaps the use of smoke could prove to be important in their staging. I also predict that we’ll be seeing props, whether that’s something in the same stream as their national final performance, or if it’s instruments, or something completely different.
All aboard… the Zibbz train!
I’m definitely all for this song, and always have been quite an avid fan. Although I liked Timebelle last year, I unfortunately could see their imminent non-qualification, but this one, well, I’d like to say that we’ll see it in the final but it’s always a gamble coming from Switzerland. Being late in the running order may prove to be helpful, but being in such a savage semi-final, I can’t confidently predict what will happen. I think that with the right staging this will stand out, and hopefully enough to send it to the final.
Our rating: 9/10
If you support Switzerland at Eurovision, make sure to vote for Zibbz in our poll! Watch their official video below, and follow our Eurovision 2018 playlist on Spotify.
